These were some of the expressions my kids voiced enthusiastically about this book. From the moment it arrived in the mail, my kids were all over this book. They abandoned their card game and started pouring over the illustrations; my 7 year-old son pulling on the tabs or lifting the flaps while my 9 year-old daughter read from the book out loud. They promptly showed it to their friends who visited and even weeks later, they were still gushing about the book when I took it out of our bookshelf again.

What makes this book so interesting? For one thing, the format; it's a spiral bound book the size of an average binder, allowing the book to lay open as the kids read and pull tabs that show how the lungs work, how many bones are in one's hand, the way the digestive tract works (that one is so cool!) or how muscles flex. My daughter says it's not just reading about the human body but exploring it in a fun way. Two of my kids' favorite parts in the book are the sections about the five senses and the digestive system. My son says he's never seen how the digestive system works and he likes sliding the food down the esophagus and learning about how the food gets digested.

The book begins with how a baby grows in its mommy's belly to birth and growth. If you are a parent who wants to begin talking about the facts of life to your inquisitive preschooler, this is the perfect book to kick-start the conversation. It does not go into too much detail (body parts are named) so you can tailor how much you want to tell your child, depending also on how many questions your child will come up with after seeing the age-appropriate illustrations.

Every page spread deals with a bodily topic in a simple layout that is informative and educational with colourful illustrations. And no two tabs or flaps are the same, making every page unique. It also contains transparent overlaps. The book is sturdy too, so that even clumsy little fingers can pull and move flaps without easy breakage. The only exception to this was one page where the lower section of a triple-layered tab tore as we were pulling it back into place, and upon further inspection I believe it's because it was not properly cut and fitted on one end.

This book makes a great gift for that young curious kid in your life. It's a hands-on book that a child will explore over and over as he or she learns more about the marvels of his and her wondrous human body. Best of all, this book helps children appreciate their bodies and what they are capable of. Who knows? It might be the initial spark for a career as a doctor, physiotherapist, psychologist, massage therapist, nurse....

I will count this book toward the following challenges: Dewey Decimal Challenge, TwentyEleven Challenge

Disclosure: Thanks to Kendal Gerard from Owlkids for sending me this book for review. I was not compensated in any other way, nor told how to rate or review this product.